Now that I've decided that Farmville aggravates me far too much to spend all that time playing it, I'd like to start playing something new. The Facebook version of The Sims is predictably horrible (No, I DON'T want to nag my friends for parts countless times just to complete a freaking couch, thank you.) I would, however, like to play a non-Facebook version of the Sims or something like it.

I was a big fan of Sims 2 before my previous computer became a paperweight, and I'd love to play it again, or something similar. I'd consider playing an online version of the game, provided that it was either free or very low-cost, and provided that the interactions went beyond just begging your friends for parts and/or goodies.

My husband is a big gamer, and I explained what I'm looking for this way: I want a game I can play the way my friends and I used to play Barbies. I want to dress my characters, create a living environment for them, and then play out stories. No fighting, no ridiculously long, complicated quests that require a lot of attention and/or skill-building. Essentially, I want to play virtual Barbies.

Currently, my primary computer is a Dell Inspiron, which I bought just because it's lightweight and cheap and therefore is not great for graphics, etc. My husband has given me permission to download and play a game on his computer, with the understanding I can only play it when he's not around (because he's on it otherwise).

So.... any suggestions for what I might look into playing?

Current Mood: curious

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I'm in the same boat as you. My HP laptop doesn't support a lot of graphics either, which is why I've backed away from a lot of FB games in addition to quitting the Sims-like games (I did Disney City Girl for awhile -- PITA as far as quests and nagging friends for help, more so than the FB version of Sims).

I've heard that Sims Life Stories is laptop or low-graphic friendly. I don't know if there's a free download around, though.

I read a review of it, and it sounds like it could be a good direction for me. It's an older game, but since it would be a one-time purchase, I wouldn't mind paying for it. I just didn't want to get interested in an online game that would have me paying a monthly fee, because we've now got a car payment and preschool tuition every month! Thanks for the suggestion.

I had friended enough people in-game that it wasn't so much a matter of not getting the pieces that were required to complete Farmville tasks. It was simply that I realized it took me about two hours to visit all my farms and do everything required for their maintenance, and that's FAR too much time to devote to something that had begun causing me more irritation than joy. Then, when their mobile app stopped functioning -- which at least let me tend my crops with a minimum of trouble -- I was like, "I'm out of here!"

I play the sims 2 and sims 3. Sims 3 is buggy as heck and needs lots of third party mods to make it playable. Sims 2 is still superior in my opinion and you can totally play barbie with them as evidenced by the fact that I tell stories with the suckers.

You should be able to play the sims 2 on a less powerful machine. I play it on my old laptop which is 9 years old and it plays fine. I don't know if it can be downloaded though anymore. If not, let me know. I might be able to help since I have it both digitally and in hardcopy.

I asked The Gryphon, and he's given me permission to install Sims 2 on his computer, which I actually have on CD-ROM. Reading up on The Sims: Life Stories after the suggestion above, though, I'm thinking of trying that first. For a long time, I've been fascinated with the idea of Sims who actually age, and it sounds like Life Stories might be a good way of testing out that option without worrying about the bugs and massive requirements I've heard go along with Sims 3.

Is there any sort of Sims multiplayer game, other than the annoying Facebook one?

There's aging in the Sims 2. Babies are around for 3 days, toddlers, 4, Children 8, Teens 14, Adults 28, and Elders kick off depending on a base number of 65 that is skewed up or down based off of if they were platinum mood when they aged up. And if you have Sims 2: University, you can send them to college which adds another 28 days to the sims's life.

Life Stories, like Castaway stories and Pet Stories, uses the Sims 2 engine but has a plot that you follow and more limited options.

There really isn't a good multiplayer Sims game out there. The annoying facebook one I don't think is even supported anymore.

As someone said above, the Facebook Sims is no longer supported. But your best bet would be to install Sims 2 and go back to the classic. I was playing Sims 3 last night but I literally built this computer to PLAY Sims 3...and now it looks like I will have to build a new one next year for Sims 4 LOL.

Honestly, there is nothing quite like the Sims franchise. I've looked and even with all it's flaws, it wins.